Upgradable video laryngoscope system exhibiting reduced far end dimming

ABSTRACT

A video laryngoscope system, comprising a laryngoscope blade coupled to a video monitor via a data cable. At least one of the video monitor or the data cable comprise logic to: identify the laryngoscope blade; determine which of the laryngoscope blade, the video monitor, and the data cable have a most up-to-date set of image capture settings based on the identified laryngoscope blade; and transmit the most up-to-date set of image capture settings to the laryngoscope blade for use in capturing intra-airway images.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 based on U.S.Provisional Patent Application No. 62/444,181, filed Jan. 9, 2017, thedisclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND

Endotracheal intubation provides the current preferred method forcontrol of the airway for mechanical ventilation. The process involvespassing an endotracheal tube (ETT) through the mouth, past the tongue,and to and through the vocal cords and larynx to seal the airway. Thisprotects the openness of the airway and protects the airway fromaspiration of gastric contents, foreign substances, or secretions.

Traditional laryngoscopes rely on opening the upper airway to provide adirect line of sight from the medical practitioner's eye to the larynx.Subsequent developments in laryngoscopes utilized fiberoptic bundles,sometimes coupled to video displays. More recently, laryngoscopes withvideo cameras have made it possible to display the image of the airwayanatomy from a remote position, and in some instances allow theintubator to identify the relevant anatomical landmarks withoutrepositioning the patient. This technology reduces the past problem ofdifficult intubation when the glottis entrance cannot be adequately seenand further reduces the likelihood of infection by medical personnelbeing unduly close to the nose and mouth of the patient can be avoided.

Unfortunately, image quality and consistency have reduced the utility ofvideo laryngoscopes and have caused many practitioners to revert totraditional, direct view laryngoscopes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a laryngoscope system consistent withembodiments described herein;

FIG. 2A is an exploded front isometric view of the laryngoscope blade ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 2B is a side cross-sectional view of the laryngoscope blade of FIG.2A;

FIG. 2C is a side plan view of the laryngoscope blade of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 2D is a front plan view of the laryngoscope blade of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 2E is a rear plan view of the laryngoscope blade of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 3 illustrates a simplified exemplary configuration of one or morecomponents of the laryngoscope system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an exemplary functional block diagram of componentsimplemented in a single-use laryngoscope blade consistent withembodiments described herein;

FIG. 5 is an exemplary functional block diagram of componentsimplemented in a data cable consistent with embodiments describedherein;

FIG. 6 is an exemplary functional block diagram of componentsimplemented in a video monitor consistent with embodiments describedherein; and

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram illustrating exemplary process for capturingimages via the video laryngoscope system of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings.The same reference numbers in different drawings may identify the sameor similar elements. Also, the following detailed description does notlimit the invention.

Several embodiments of a video-based intubation laryngoscope and systemare described that allow for examination of the upper airway duringintubation. The system employs video laryngoscope embodiments configuredto view a patient's glottis, reposition the patient's epiglottis, viewthe glottic aperture and convey video images of the patient's upperairway anatomy including the glottis and/or glottic aperture andsurrounding area to a video monitor viewable by the laryngoscope user.

Embodiments of the laryngoscope include both single-use (i.e.,disposable) and reusable laryngoscope blades that include imagecapturing and lighting elements. The blade is used to reposition theepiglottis by engagement of the patient's vallecula, or alternatively,directly lifting the epiglottis to reveal the glottic aperture. Duringand after insertion of the blade, into the patient's upper airway,images obtained from the image capturing elements are conveyed to avideo monitor viewable by the laryngoscope user via a data cable.Improved intubation speed and accuracy are accomplished by providingunobstructed, real time or “live” views that are immediately viewable onthe video monitor.

Consistent with embodiments described herein, the laryngoscope blade,the data cable, and the video monitor may each include logic componentsconfigured to enable image data to be exchanged between the imagecapturing element and the video monitor in an efficient and optimizedmanner.

In exemplary embodiments, the laryngoscope blade may include logicalcomponents for authenticating the blade with other components in thesystem (e.g., the video monitor and/or data cable) and logging use ofthe laryngoscope blade (e.g., number of times used, dates/times, etc),and for negotiating with other components in the laryngoscope system(e.g., the blade and the video monitor) to determine which component hasthe most up-to-date software, which may include optimized camerasettings and other instructions relevant to the particular laryngoscopeblade.

In one exemplary embodiment relating to disposable laryngoscope blades,one or more components of the image capturing element may be includedwithin the data cable, thus rendering the remaining image capturingcomponents in the laryngoscope blade less expensive, which isparticularly advantageous for a single use device. In such anembodiment, the data cable may include one or more logical componentsconfigured to identify when a laryngoscope blade has been connected,which blade has been connected (e.g., type of blade, particular blade,etc.), and to negotiate with other components in the laryngoscope system(e.g., the blade and the video monitor) to determine which component hasa most up-to-date software, which may include optimized camera settingsand other instructions relevant to the identified laryngoscope blade.

In other embodiments, such as reusable laryngoscope blades, the logicalcomponents of the data cable may be integrated within the laryngoscopeblade and negotiation may take place between the laryngoscope blade andthe video monitor.

As briefly described above, exemplary embodiments of the laryngoscopesystem facilitate the exchange of optimized camera settings betweensystem components. As described in detail below, such optimized camerasettings may be specific to each type of laryngoscope blade and mayenable the video camera elements within the laryngoscope blade tocapture images having a reduced amount of far field dimming in the eventthat a portion of the patient's anatomy partially obscures the cameraview. This allows practitioners to ascertain the relevant anatomy, evenwhere such anatomy is the far field of the image.

FIG. 1 illustrates a video laryngoscope system 100 consistent withimplementations described herein. As shown, video laryngoscope system100 comprises a laryngoscope blade 102, a data cable 104, and a videomonitor 106. FIG. 2A is an exploded front perspective view of asingle-use laryngoscope blade 102 configured in accordance withembodiments described herein. FIGS. 2B-2E are an assembled frontperspective view, side view, front view, and rear view of blade 102,respectively.

As shown in FIGS. 1-2E, laryngoscope blade 102 includes a handle portion108, a blade portion 110, a distal tip 112, a camera module 114, a lightsource module 116, a flexible printed circuit board (PCB) 118, and acable interface 120.

During use, distal tip 112 is used for lifting the epiglottis or forengaging the vallecula of a patient to lift the epiglottis to reveal theglottic aperture. Camera module 114 and light source module 116 arepositioned on a posterior side of the blade portion 110 and are directedtowards the distal tip 112 so as to capture and transmit images of thedistal tip 112 and corresponding patient anatomy to video monitor 106via data cable 104.

Camera module 114 may include charge-coupled device (CCD) orComplementary Metal Oxide Silicon (CMOS) configurations that may beplaced at a point of angulation of blade portion 110 near its midpointto provide for advantageous positioning of camera module 114 at somedistance from the glottic opening to allow a degree of perspective andwide angle viewing.

Light source module 116 may include a light emitting diode (LED)lighting array.

As shown in FIG. 2A, flexible PCB 118 may be configured to couple cableinterface 120 to camera module 114 and light source module 116 and mayfurther include or more processors or memory devices, as describedbelow. In other embodiments, PCB 118 may include two or more distinctPCBs joined by wires or other elements.

As described briefly above, in some embodiments data cable 104 mayinclude one or more components of the image capturing element, such as aserializer component. In such an embodiment, the data cable 104 mayfurther include one or more logical components configured to identifywhen a laryngoscope blade has been connected, which blade has beenconnected, and to negotiate with video monitor 106 to determine which ofthe data cable 104 and the video monitor 106 have the most up-to-datecamera settings for use during image capture. In such a single-use bladeembodiment, the combination of the data cable 104 and the laryngoscopeblade 106 may together perform functions corresponding to reusablelaryngoscope.

Video monitor 106 may provide power to and initiate image capture fromlaryngoscope blade 102 via data cable 104. For example, as shown in FIG.1, video monitor 106 may include a display 122, and a control pad 124.Practitioners (e.g., medical personnel) may interface with video monitor106 during use to initiate image capture, freeze a particular frame, oradjust certain limited settings. Although not shown in the Figures,video monitor 106 may also include a data cable interface for receivingan end of data cable 104, a battery or other power source, and a remotemonitor interface for enabling the view of display 122 to be transmittedto one or more other display monitors.

FIG. 3 illustrates a simplified exemplary configuration of one or morecomponents 300 of laryngoscope system 100, such as laryngoscope 102,data cable 104, and video monitor 106. Referring to FIG. 3, component300 may include bus 310, a processing unit 320, a memory 330, an inputdevice 340, an output device 350, and a communication interface 360. Bus310 may include a path that permits communication among the components300 of laryngoscope system 100. In one exemplary implementation, bus 310may include an I²C bus which supports a master/slave relationshipbetween components 300. As described below, in exemplaryimplementations, the master and slave roles may be negotiated betweenthe components.

Processing unit 320 may include one or more processors, microprocessors,or processing logic that may interpret and execute instructions. Memory330 may include a random access memory (RAM) or another type of dynamicstorage device that may store information and instructions for executionby processing unit 320. Memory 330 may also include a read only memory(ROM) device (e.g., an electrically erasable and programmable ROM(EEPROM)) or another type of static storage device that may store staticinformation and instructions for use by processing unit 320. In otherembodiments, memory 330 may further include a solid state drive (SDD).

Input device 340 may include a mechanism that permits a user to inputinformation to laryngoscope system 100, such as a keyboard, a keypad, amouse, a pen, a microphone, a touch screen, voice recognition and/orbiometric mechanisms, etc. Output device 350 may include a mechanismthat outputs information to the user, including a display (e.g., aliquid crystal display (LCD)), a printer, a speaker, etc. In someimplementations, a touch screen display may act as both an input deviceand an output device. In the laryngoscope system 100 depicted in FIG. 1,only video monitor 106 may be provided with input device 340 and outputdevice 350, however in other implementations, one or more othercomponents of laryngoscope system 100 may include such devices. Asdepicted in FIG. 1, laryngoscope blade 102 and data cable 104 may beimplemented as headless devices that are not directly provided withinput device 340 or output device 350 and may receive commands from, forexample, video monitor 106.

Communication interface 360 may include one or more transceivers thatlaryngoscope system 100 (e.g., video monitor 106) uses to communicatewith other devices via wired, wireless or optical mechanisms. Forexample, communication interface 360 may include a modem or an Ethernetinterface to a local area network (LAN) or other mechanisms forcommunicating with elements in a communication network (not shown inFIG. 1). In other embodiments, communication interface 360 may includeone or more radio frequency (RF) transmitters, receivers and/ortransceivers and one or more antennas for transmitting and receiving RFdata via a communication network, such as a wireless LAN or Wi-Finetwork.

The exemplary configuration illustrated in FIG. 3 is provided forsimplicity. It should be understood that laryngoscope system 100 mayinclude more or fewer components than illustrated in FIG. 3. In anexemplary implementation, laryngoscope system 100 performs operations inresponse to one or more processing units 320 executing sequences ofinstructions contained in a computer-readable medium, such as memory330. A computer-readable medium may be defined as a physical or logicalmemory device. The software instructions may be read into memory 330from another computer-readable medium (e.g., a hard disk drive (HDD),SSD, etc.), or from another device via communication interface 360.Alternatively, hard-wired circuitry may be used in place of or incombination with software instructions to implement processes consistentwith the implementations described herein. Thus, implementationsdescribed herein are not limited to any specific combination of hardwarecircuitry and software.

FIG. 4 is an exemplary functional block diagram of componentsimplemented in a single-use laryngoscope blade 102 in accordance with anembodiment described herein. In the embodiment of FIG. 4, all or some ofthe components may be implemented by processing unit 320 executingsoftware instructions stored in memory 330.

As shown, laryngoscope blade 102 may include identification andauthentication logic 405, version checking logic 410, settings storage415, data logger 420, light source logic 425, image capture logic 430,and image output logic 435.

Identification and authentication logic 405 is configured to, upon powerup of laryngoscope blade 102, exchange identification and authenticationinformation with data cable 104 and/or video monitor 106. For example,laryngoscope blade 102 may communicate identification information todata cable 104 via bus 310 (e.g., the I²C bus). In one embodiment, theidentification information may comprise information relating to the typeof laryngoscope blade 102, such as the size, application, model, etc. Inother implementations, the identification information may includeinformation specific to the particular laryngoscope blade 102, such asserial number or other uniquely identifying information.

Consistent with embodiments described herein, identification andauthentication logic 405 may provide the identifying information to datacable 104 and video monitor 106 for use in determining whetherlaryngoscope blade 102 is authorized for use with the data cable 104 andvideo monitor 106. For example, as described below, upon receipt of theidentification information from laryngoscope blade 102, the data cable104 and/or video monitor 106 may determine whether the laryngoscopeblade 102 is authorized for use. In this manner, unauthorized, thirdparty laryngoscope blades may not be improperly used with thelaryngoscope system described herein.

Furthermore, in other embodiments, identification and authenticationlogic 405 may be configured to exchange usage information stored in datalogger 420 with video monitor 106 via data cable 104. For example, datalogger 420 may be configured to record details regarding usage (e.g.,power up) of the laryngoscope blade 102, such as date, time, andduration of laryngoscope blade 102. Identification and authenticationlogic 405 may, during subsequent power ups, transmit this information tovideo monitor 106 to for use in determining whether the laryngoscopeblade 102 may be properly used. For example, single-use blades may onlybe authorized for power-up a predetermined (e.g., <5) number of times,to ensure that the blades are not used outside of their intendedpurpose. For reusable blades, the usage information stored in datalogger 420 may be used to provide historical information, reconditioningrecommendations, etc. In other embodiments, the information may be usedto monitor a time between uses, to determine whether appropriatesterilization procedures have been followed.

Version checking logic 410 is configured to, in coordination withsimilar logic in data cable 104 and video monitor 106, determine whichcomponent has a most recently updated set of camera settings. Forexample, because components of medical devices may not be upgradable inthe field, providing an integrated upgrade path within the separatecomponents provides an efficient manner for rolling out updated camerasettings using only a single factory-updated component, withoutrequiring a dedicated field update process.

Consistent with embodiments described herein, upon power up of system100, version checking logic 410 determines which of laryngoscope blade102, data cable, 104, or video monitor 106 maintains the most recentlyupdated set of camera settings in settings storage 415. If laryngoscopeblade 102 is not the device with the most recently updated set of camerasettings, the device having such settings may transmit the camerasettings to laryngoscope blade 102 or otherwise make the settingsavailable to image capture logic 430.

As described briefly above, in one embodiment, laryngoscope blade 102,data cable, 104, and video monitor 106 may be coupled via an I²C bus,which requires that only one device be in the “master” role at any onetime. Generally, since the main control of system 100 is initiated byvideo monitor 106, video monitor 106 is typically in the “master” role.However, consistent with embodiments described herein, upon system powerup, each of video monitor 106, data cable 104, and/or laryngoscope blade102 may alternatively assume the “master” role for the purposes ofsharing information regarding its set of camera settings.

Light source logic 425 is configured to cause light source module 116 tobecome illuminated in accordance with settings stored in settingsstorage 415 or received from video monitor 106.

Image capture logic 430 is configured to capture images via cameramodule 114 based on the most recently updated set of camera settingsidentified and stored in settings storage 415 and/or received from videomonitor 106. The captured images are then forwarded to image outputlogic 435 for relay to video monitor 106. More specifically, imagecapture logic 430 is configured to receive image capture controlcommands from video monitor 106 via data cable 104. In response to animage capture command, image capture logic 430 captures images based onimage capture settings stored in settings storage 415. Depending onwhether laryngoscope blade 102 is a single-use or reusable blade, imageoutput logic 435 may be integrated within laryngoscope 102 or mayinclude multiple components included within laryngoscope blade 102 anddata cable 104.

FIG. 5 is an exemplary functional block diagram of componentsimplemented in a data cable 104 in accordance with an embodimentdescribed herein. In the embodiment of FIG. 5, all or some of thecomponents may be implemented by processing unit 320 executing softwareinstructions stored in memory 330.

As shown, data cable 104 may include identification and authenticationlogic 505, version checking logic 510, and settings storage 515configured similarly to identification and authentication logic 405,version checking logic 410, and settings storage 415 described abovewith respect to laryngoscope blade 102. For example, identification andauthentication logic 505 may include logic for determining an identityof a connected laryngoscope blade 102. In some implementations,identification and authentication logic 505 may be further configured todetermine whether the blade 102 is suitable for use with data cable 104.

Version checking logic 510 includes logic for determining which of datacable 104, video monitor 106, and/or laryngoscope blade 102 has the mostup-to-date set of camera settings corresponding to the identifiedlaryngoscope blade 102. As described above in relation to versionchecking logic 410, version checking logic 510 is similarly configuredto alternatively transmit an indication of the version of the set ofcamera settings stored in settings storage 515 to each of video monitor106 and laryngoscope blade 102 and similarly receive correspondinginformation from each of video monitor 106 and laryngoscope blade 102.When it is determined that the version of the set of camera settingsstored in settings storage 515 is the most up-to-date, version checkinglogic 510 may provide the settings to image capture logic 430 inlaryngoscope blade 102.

Data cable 104 may further include image processing logic 520 thatperforms some or all of the image processing on images captured bycamera module 114. In one embodiment, image processing logic 520 mayinclude a serializer and/or related logic for preparing images capturedby camera module 114 for output and display by video monitor 106.

FIG. 6 is an exemplary functional block diagram of componentsimplemented in a video monitor 106 in accordance with an embodimentdescribed herein. In the embodiment of FIG. 6, all or some of thecomponents may be implemented by processing unit 320 executing softwareinstructions stored in memory 330.

As shown, video monitor 106 may include identification andauthentication logic 605, version checking logic 610, settings storage615, control logic 620, and display logic 625. Identification andauthentication logic 605, version checking logic 610, and settingsstorage 615 may be configured similarly to identification andauthentication logic 405/505, version checking logic 410/510, andsettings storage 415/515 described above with respect to laryngoscopeblade 102 and data cable 104. For example, identification andauthentication logic 605 may include logic for determining an identityof a connected laryngoscope blade 102. In some implementations,identification and authentication logic 605 may be further configured todetermine whether the blade 102 is suitable for use with video monitor106.

Version checking logic 610 includes logic for determining which of datacable 104, video monitor 106, and/or laryngoscope blade 102 has the mostup-to-date set of camera settings corresponding to the identifiedlaryngoscope blade 102. As described above in relation to versionchecking logic 410, version checking logic 610 is similarly configuredto alternatively transmit an indication of the version of the set ofcamera settings stored in settings storage 615 to each of data cable 106and/or laryngoscope blade 102 and similarly receiving correspondinginformation from each of video monitor 106 and laryngoscope blade 102before resuming the “master” role on bus 310 (e.g., the I²C bus). Whenit is determined that the version of the set of camera settings storedin settings storage 615 is the most up-to-date, version checking logic610 may provide the settings to image capture logic 430 in laryngoscopeblade 102.

After version checking logic 610 completes its check, display logic 625receives the image data or video signal from laryngoscope blade 102 viadata cable 104. As described above, in some implementations, portions ofthe processing of the image data may be performed by image processinglogic 520 in data cable 204.

Consistent with embodiments described herein, the most up-to-date camerasettings stored in one of settings storage 415, 515, or 615, may includecamera settings optimized for capturing the most useful images in anintra-airway environment. Such an environment typically exhibits thefollowing characteristics: 1) extremely confined field of view,typically having no more than a 3″×3″ near circular cavity within whichto operate; 2) no primary ambient environmental lighting; all lightingrelies on a fixed single point background light emitted by light sourcemodule 116 provided immediately adjacent to camera module 114; 3)extreme red spectrum color bias; 4) frequent extreme swings in lightingbrightness caused by unpredictable intrusion of objects into camerafield of view when combined with the small usage environment; and 5)high contrast with both near-field and far-field points of interest.Unfortunately, conventional camera settings are not optimized for suchan environment and, consequently, images or video quality may sufferand/or pertinent visual details may be lost.

As described above, camera module 114 comprises a CCD or CMOS device.Consistent with embodiments described herein, camera module 114 includesa plurality of configurable programming registers that allow the imagecapturing characteristics of camera module 114 to be optimized. Settingsstorage 415, 515, and/or 615 in one or more of laryngoscope blade 102,data cable 104, and video monitor 106 may be programmed to include oneor more sets of customized camera module register values to optimizeimage and/or video quality in intra-airway environments. For example,different sets of customized camera module register values may be storedfor different identified laryngoscope blades, such as blades for adults,versus pediatric blades, etc.

Modern camera modules generally include automatic gain control (AGC)and/or automatic exposure control (AEC), which are designed to improveimage quality by automatically boosting the gain and increasing theexposure in low light images so that objects can be seen more clearlyand reduce the gain and decrease the exposure in bright images to avoidthe subject of the image from being washed out or blurry. Unfortunately,in intra-airway environments, occluding elements, such as the patient'stongue, an endotracheal tube (ETT), etc. may briefly block the cameraview causing the AGC/AEC to reduce the gain and decrease the exposuretime, thereby losing far field details, which may be necessary foraccurate insertion of the laryngoscope or placement of a correspondingETT.

Consistent with embodiments described herein, camera module registers orsettings relating to the control of AGC and AEC may be optimized. Inparticular, a setting relating to an upper limit of an AGC/AEC stableoperating region may be modified. The upper limit of the AGC/AEC stableoperating region refers to how high or bright an incoming image or videosignal must become before the camera's gain algorithm mutes orattenuates the signal, by a preset amount, before sending the signal tovideo monitor 106. Accordingly, consistent with described embodiments,the upper limit of the AGC/AEC stable operating region may be raised(from its default) so that the “trigger point” of upper limit gainattenuation does not occur until the incoming signal significantlyincreases. The consequence is that any intruding near-field object, suchas a patient's tongue or a medical intubation tube, would need to eitherblock a larger portion of the field of view or remain in the field ofview much longer.

Consistent with embodiments described herein, a setting relating to thelower limit of the AGC/AEC stable operating region may also be modified.This setting controls how low or dim an incoming signal must achievebefore the camera's gain algorithm boosts the signal sent to host.Because a primary objective for intra-airway image capture is to ensurethat a patient's far-field vocal chords are visible most of the timeduring an intubation procedure, the value for the lower limit of theAGC/AEC stable operating region may be increased (from its default) toconsequently maintain the “window” in which attenuation is active to aminimum.

In some embodiments, one or more settings relate to or identify themaximum gain boost that can be applied when the incoming signal dropsbelow the AGC/AEC lower limit. As described above, since the AGC/AEClower limit is raised in accordance with the described embodiments, theeffect is that gain boost would be triggered at gain amounts higher thantraditionally applied. This may cause images to overexpose even atmoderate lighting levels, since the lower limit was now near or abovenormal lighting levels. To counter this, the automatic gain ceilingmaximum AGC value setting may be lowered (from its default) to limit themaximum boost that camera module 114 can apply. This helps manage theover exposure effect and bring it to an acceptable level. Consistentwith embodiments described herein, images captured using theabove-described optimized settings results in far end vocal cord viewingthat is, for example, approximately 25 to 166% brighter than traditionallaryngoscope systems. Further, images captured using the above-describedoptimized settings result in near end reflectance of, for example,approximately 29% over traditional laryngoscope systems. For the overallfield of view, images captured using the above-described optimizedsettings result in a brightness increases of between 50 and 279% overtraditional laryngoscope systems for adults and approximately 6.4% forneonatal patients. Additionally, when imaging the vocal cords, the colortemperature of the images captured using the optimized settings shiftsto the more white/blue light and less red as compared to traditionallaryngoscope systems. However, when imaging the overall field, the colortemperature shifts to the more red light and less white/blue as comparedto traditional laryngoscope systems. Consequently, images captured usingthe above-described optimized settings yield more a significantly moreconsistent color temperature.

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary process 700 forcapturing images via video laryngoscope system 100 described herein. Inone embodiment, process 700 may begin when laryngoscope blade 102 isplugged into data cable 104, data cable 104 is plugged into videomonitor 106, and video monitor 106 is powered up (block 702).

At block 704, data cable 104 and/or video monitor 106 identifylaryngoscope blade 102 and determines whether it is authentic. Forexample, as described above, identification and authentication logic 605requests and receives blade identification information from laryngoscopeblade 102 and determines whether blade 102 is authentic and,potentially, that it has not exceeded its authorized number of uses. Ifnot (block 704—NO), the process ends and a notification or alert isoutput via video monitor 106 (block 705).

However, if blade 102 is identified and determined to be authentic(block 704—YES), two or more of the laryngoscope blade 102, data cable104, and video monitor 106 negotiate to determine which device has themost up-to-date camera settings relative to the identified laryngoscopeblade 102 (block 706). For example, as described above, each componentmay alternatively assume a “master” role on bus 310 to receive versioninformation from the other components, which are then compared to itscurrent version.

At block 708, it is determined whether a device other than laryngoscopeblade 102 has the most up-to-date settings. If not (block 708—NO), theprocess proceeds to block 712. However, when one of the other devicesincludes the most up-to-date settings, (block 708—YES), the settings areforwarded to camera module 114 in laryngoscope blade 102 for use duringimage capture (block 710).

At block 712, laryngoscope blade 102 receives an image capture commandfrom video monitor 106. For example, image capture logic 430 inlaryngoscope blade 102 may receive a request from control logic 620 invideo monitor 106. In other embodiments, image capturing may initiatedautomatically upon connection of laryngoscope blade 102 to video monitor106, or via a control on laryngoscope blade 102. In any event, onceinitiated, image capture logic 430 may capture images based on thesettings received or verified in step 708/710 above (block 714).

Captured images are forwarded to video monitor 106 via data cable 104(block 716). For example, image output logic 435 in laryngoscope blade102 may output the image data captured by camera module 114 to datacable 104. As described above, in some implementations, some or allimage processing on the image data may be performed by image processinglogic 520 in data cable 104.

Processed image or video data is received by video monitor 106 (block718) and output via display 122 (block 720).

The foregoing description of embodiments provides illustration, but isnot intended to be exhaustive or to limit the embodiments to the preciseform disclosed. In the preceding description, various embodiments havebeen described with reference to the accompanying drawings. However,various modifications and changes may be made thereto, and additionalembodiments may be implemented, without departing from the broader scopeof the invention as set forth in the claims that follow. The descriptionand drawings are accordingly to be regarded as illustrative rather thanrestrictive.

As set forth in this description and illustrated by the drawings,reference is made to “an exemplary embodiment,” “an embodiment,”“embodiments,” etc., which may include a particular feature, structureor characteristic in connection with an embodiment(s). However, the useof the phrase or term “an embodiment,” “embodiments,” etc., in variousplaces in the specification does not necessarily refer to allembodiments described, nor does it necessarily refer to the sameembodiment, nor are separate or alternative embodiments necessarilymutually exclusive of other embodiment(s). The same applies to the term“implementation,” “implementations,” etc.

The terms “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to be interpreted to includeone or more items. Further, the phrase “based on” is intended to beinterpreted as “based, at least in part, on,” unless explicitly statedotherwise. The term “and/or” is intended to be interpreted to includeany and all combinations of one or more of the associated items.

The word “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving as an example.” Anyembodiment or implementation described as “exemplary” is not necessarilyto be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments orimplementations.

Use of ordinal terms such as “first,” “second,” “third,” etc., in theclaims to modify a claim element does not by itself connote anypriority, precedence, or order of one claim element over another, thetemporal order in which acts of a method are performed, the temporalorder in which instructions executed by a device are performed, etc.,but are used merely as labels to distinguish one claim element having acertain name from another element having a same name (but for use of theordinal term) to distinguish the claim elements.

No element, act, or instruction described in the present applicationshould be construed as critical or essential to the embodimentsdescribed herein unless explicitly described as such.

What is claimed is:
 1. A video laryngoscope system, comprising: alaryngoscope blade coupled to a video monitor via a data cable, thelaryngoscope blade comprising an image capture device, a light source, aprocessor, and storage, wherein at least one of the video monitor or thedata cable comprise logic to: identify the laryngoscope blade; determinewhich of the laryngoscope blade, the video monitor, and the data cablehave a most up-to-date set of image capture settings based on theidentified laryngoscope blade; and transmit the most up-to-date set ofimage capture settings to the laryngoscope blade for use in capturingintra-airway images.
 2. The video laryngoscope system of claim 1,wherein the laryngoscope blade, the video monitor, and the data cableexchange data across a shared bus and wherein each of the laryngoscopeblade, the video monitor, and the data cable further comprise logic to:alternatingly assume master and slave roles on the shared bus; transmitversion information regarding current image capture settings when in themaster role on the shared bus; and receive version information regardingcurrent image capture settings when in the slave role on the shared bus.3. The video laryngoscope system of claim 2, wherein the logic todetermine which of the laryngoscope blade, the video monitor, and thedata cable have a most up-to-date set of image capture settings isfurther configured to: compare the version information for each of thelaryngoscope blade, the video monitor, and the data cable to determinewhether one of the video monitor or the data cable have the mostup-to-date set of image capture settings based on the identifiedlaryngoscope blade, and forward, based on the determination, the mostup-to-date set of image capture settings to the laryngoscope blade. 4.The video laryngoscope system of claim 1, wherein the laryngoscope bladecomprises a single use laryngoscope blade having different imageprocessing capabilities than image processing capabilities for areusable laryngoscope blade, and wherein the data cable comprises imageprocessing logic corresponding to the image processing capabilities ofthe single use laryngoscope blade.
 5. The video laryngoscope system ofclaim 1, wherein the most up-to-date set of image capture settingsinclude optimized automatic gain control (AGC) settings for reducing farfield dimming in the presence of a near field obstruction in the fieldof view.
 6. The video laryngoscope system of claim 5, wherein theoptimized automatic gain control settings comprise: a value for an upperlimit of an AGC stable operating region that is raised from its defaultvalue; a value for a lower limit of an AGC stable operating region thatis raised from its default value; and a value for a ceiling of themaximum AGC that is lowered from its default value.
 7. The videolaryngoscope system of claim 1, wherein the most up-to-date set of imagecapture settings include optimized color temperature settings.
 8. Thevideo laryngoscope system of claim 1, wherein the logic to identify thelaryngoscope blade is further configured to: receive identificationinformation from the laryngoscope blade; and compare the receivedidentification information to information stored on the video monitor ordata cable and associated with image capture settings.
 9. The videolaryngoscope system of claim 8, wherein the identification informationcomprises one or more of model or size information.
 10. The videolaryngoscope system of claim 1, wherein the laryngoscope blade furthercomprises: data logging logic for storing information regarding one ormore of: a number of uses of the laryngoscope blade, date and timeinformation for the number of uses, or duration of use for the number ofuses.